A Day in the Life – Setting the Table for the Holiday Season

December 13, 2024           3 minute read

When does the holiday season officially start?  

It’s a common debate among households and neighborhoods. The first day of December? Day after Thanksgiving? Day after Halloween?  

For the team at UNFI, the holidays start in July. This is when our distribution centers start to ramp up efforts to prepare for Thanksgiving and the holidays that follow, ensuring they can complete orders safely, efficiently and accurately. Over the last several weeks alone, warehouse associates have moved more than 60 million cases. Jack Tschida, Ops Mgr II at UNFI, calls that a “triumph.” 

“The teamwork I see on the floor is amazing,” said Tschida. “Everyone comes together to ensure our customers and communities are taken care of. I’m so thankful for my team and everything they do to make this possible.” 

Going the Extra Mile During the Holidays 

Those cases then hit the road to be delivered to local grocery stores, where eager Thanksgiving shoppers fill their baskets to prepare their family feasts. In the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, our drivers will have traveled nearly 10 million miles to make nearly 130,000 deliveries to our customers.  

“Thanksgiving can be a hectic time for us out on the road, managing holiday traffic and weather conditions, but our teams work hard to complete and deliver orders safely, correctly and on time,” said Jeff Gray, Ops. Mgr at UNFI.  

All that driving and logistics takes a lot of expertise and collaboration across teams, including mechanics keeping the trucks in great working condition, the dispatchers coordinating routes and deliveries, and the drivers logging the extra miles.  

An Essential Part of Communities  

The holidays are about coming together, and UNFI is proud of the role it plays in feeding communities and making the holidays special. It’s a busy time for everyone, but the value we provide to the grocery stores and families counting on the UNFI team makes it all worthwhile.  

UNFI retail banners like Shoppers and Cub also take extra steps to make the shopping experience special around the holidays. It’s the last piece in a long chain of UNFI associates working to make the holidays feel magical for everyone. 

Every box packed, every pallet wrapped, every load delivered, every customer served brings joy to someone’s holiday, and we’re proud to play that essential role for so many.